An example of a bearing roller of this kind is known from WO 2016/016054. A device for detecting a radial load acting on the roller is disclosed. The device comprises a load cell that spans the roller bore diameter and is in fixed contact with diametrically opposite portions of the bore surface. When the roller is radially loaded, the circular cross section of the hollow bore is deformed to an elliptical shape. Under load, the load plane remains the same, but the contact locations of the load cell rotate within this plane during rotation of the roller. As a result, the contact locations not only experience radial displacement relative to each other, but also a transverse displacement. This effect is sometimes referred to as a chewing effect. The load cell comprises a bending beam and a hinge arrangement and is designed such that the contact locations move with the bore surfaces, via elastic deformation of the load cell, to take up the motion associated with the chewing effect.
A further example of a sensorized bearing roller is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 9,127,649. The roller is equipped with a sensor that detects a physical state of the bearing roller, which sensor is attached to an inner surface of the roller bore, which defines a cavity. A signal from the sensor is received by a processing portion, which processes and transmits the detection signal to a receiver outside of the bearing. The processing portion is provided on a substrate accommodated within the bore cavity, whereby a substrate retaining material is interposed between the sensor and the substrate. The retaining material may be an elastomeric material that is poured into the bore cavity in liquid state and then cured. Due to the above-mentioned chewing motion inside the roller bore, there is a risk that the elastomer material will become detached from the inner surface of the bore and that this will cause strain on, if not rupture of, the electrical connections between the sensor element and processing electronics.
There is still room for improvement.